Opal Once More
by Shadaez
Summary: Continuity to Time Paradox. Opal from the past got away. Artemis must exercise his 'unpredictable criminal mind' to track down Opal, and engage in yet another adventure with his fairy allies.
1. Chapter 1

_And we have another bunny hopping in after reading the summary~ _

_Disclaimer : This IS a fanfiction, not a leak or anything like this. I am in no way affiliated with Eoin Colfer or the Artemis Fowl series. In any cases, I doubt Eoin Colfer would write as badly as I did. Fake modesty aside, here ends the disclaimer. _

_This is my debut in the Books category, so enjoy~_

* * *

Holly Short awoke with a start. A voice was speaking in her head. Above her, Foaly seemed to be floating in mid-air, saying words still incomprehensible among her sleep haze.

For a moment, Holly stared at Foaly, wondering if her odds of staying sane had finally reached zero, especially after what happened yesterday. She had always suspected that sharing too many adventures with Artemis Fowl would eat away at her sanity. So seven adventures is the limit.

"Wake up, Holly. Opal escaped. Your weekend leave was removed." Holly lay for a moment, waiting for the meaning of those words to sink in. As the lasts of her sleep haze faded, Holly was grateful to realize her sanity was still intact. She had just fallen asleep without removing her helmet. The translucent display of her visor made a video feed of Foaly appear to float in mid-air.

Suddenly, her brain registered the meaning her auditory senses were feeding it. Sitting up suddenly, Holly made a swift hand gesture to command her helmet open the communication to Foaly.

"Opal?" Holly managed hoarsely. Her throat was about as dry as the Sahara. Choking of the first mouthful of saliva, Holly wet her throat enough to stop whispering hoarsely.

"Finally, you are awake. I had to play my glorious voice in your helmet thirteen times before you woke up." Foaly said, rubbing his paunch with a satisfied look on his face. On the table, a bento was so cleaned Holly suspect Foaly actually licked it.

"Explains the nightmare I was having. You floating in the visor made me question my sanity too" Holly said, pulling her helmet off. Setting it on her bedside table, Holly made a combination of hand gestures and blinks to command the helmet project a screen instead. "So, what was it about Opal?"

"Furty dug through the kraken mess, but only managed to recover the helmet and locator." Foaly explained, tapping slowly on his keyboard as he sipped his packet of carrot juice.

"Why am I not surprised..." Holly sighed, suddenly aware of the tangy smell of her sweat.

"Trubs want you topside immediately after getting a Recon pack from my office. A flare is due in ten minutes at Tara." Foaly said.

"Ten minutes?" Holly gasped. "I need a bath."

"No such luxuries. Blame yourself for waking this late." Foaly said.

"Exactly how late am I?" Holly said, stripping off her soiled LEPrecon suit. With a lithe movement, she hopped into her shower. Surely a quick shower won't take long.

"I just finished Caballine's lunch bento. That's how late you are." Foaly said.

Holly twisted her tap, waiting for comforting, warm water to beat down her body. Nothing.

"Besides, an accident at Stonehenge chute broke a water pipe. No water pressure in your area until those mine shuttles repairs the pipes." Foaly said.

Holly felt an urge to smash something.

For some reason, Foaly could guess that train of thought. "Rather than thinking of what is worthless enough to be smashed, get going. You have a pod ride in 10, no, 9 and a half minutes." Foaly said.

Stamping her foot once, just like how Opal would do when someone interfere with her world domination plans, Holly settled for a quick wipe with a wet cloth, then stormed out, pulling on a new LEPrecon suit from her wardrobe. She would have to settle for the sticky feeling. At least she wouldn't stink, thanks to the absorbent quality of these suits.

"Godspeed." Holly sighed, grabbing her helmet before racing out of her house, pausing only to give a swift salute to her mother's photo hanging next to her door.

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Trouble Kelp is unhappy. Very unhappy. At this very moment, his face match the hue once reserved for Root. It became an inside joke that beetroot hue is an heirloom of the Commanders.

"I don't care how you do it, Foaly. Even if you are to use something out of the law book. Locate Opal." Trouble barked.

"Reminds me of Root." Foaly whispered, breaking into horsy guffaws. The two pixies behind him broke into gentle laughter.

Trouble sighed. While he had expected comparisons with Root, he had never expected this kind.

"Don't worry, Trubs. If it's out of law book, then finding Opal is easy." Foaly said, his face serious. A feat, considering his long face.

"Trouble." Trouble corrected reflexively, catching sight of a glint in Foaly's eyes.

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"Holly, you made it. Five minutes to hotshot." Foaly said, pointing to a black gun on the equipments table.

Holly rubbed her eyes, picking up the gun. It immediately flickered, changing color to match the surrounding. Holly had to strain to actually make out the gun.

"Bamboozle me." Holly said, knowing Foaly was going to do it anyway.

"The new Neutrino. Still in prototype, from my personal lab. There isn't even a code name for this baby. Its surface was same material as the cam-foil, albeit more hardy. Its focus is on magic, so, only three settings." Foaly said.

"Magic?" Holly asked, her ears cocked at the word.

"Lithium batteries, not different from those used in Time-Stop towers. Of course, there are other features, but, with a flare coming, I will explain later." Foaly said.

Holly nodded, jamming the gun into her holster. The color change was immediate. One has to squint really hard to know she was armed. "So, where am I going?" Holly asked.

"Make a guess, Holly. This is Tara. We are going against a genius super-criminal. I am too big a liability for LEP to go on field." Foaly said, watching as Holly settle into the hotshot pod.

Holly felt a phantom tingle on her lips. For a moment, her face felt warm. "Artemis Fowl." Holly choked on her saliva for the second time in so many minutes.

Artemis Fowl the Second watched as Myles and Beckett Fowl play fight on their mother's bed, much to the amusement of their parents. A smile twitched on Artemis's face.

"Tempted to join them?" Butler said, standing next to his ward. Artemis was quiet for a moment.

"Yes." Artemis conceded. "A part of me was tempted. The lost childhood part. Yet, I was reminded that I am 15, and should be 18."

Butler made a gentle chuckle, checking his phone. The phone was linked to the security system of Fowl Manor.

"Surprise. Who would have thought we would see Captain Short so soon." Butler said, watching a silhouette floated into Fowl Manor grounds.

Artemis made a sound similar to a gasp and a choke. 'Hurrk' would be more exact. He was suddenly aware of his increased heart rate and heat blossoming on his face. Familiar. "Well then, shall we meet her?" Artemis said softly, standing up.

As quietly as they could, Artemis and his manservant left the room, making their way down the staircase.

Holly had already taken off her helmet, sitting on one of the few Victorian chairs in the living room. "Opal escaped." Holly said bluntly.

"Not surprised." Artemis said, taking a sit in front of Holly. A projection of Foaly munching a carrot was thrown on the wall.

"No red tape for asking the assistance of ex-criminal mastermind Mud Boy genius?" Artemis continued.

"Use something out of the law book. Locate Opal. Trubs exact words. Apparently, the committee is willing to close both eyes as long as Opal is located." Foaly explained.

No surprises. What happened during the Opal deception had been more than enough to assure them that Opal is beyond dangerous. If execution wasn't outlawed, there would be a unanimous decision to execute elder Opal.

Suddenly, something flashed in his mind, brighter then the sparks of romance novel plots and symphony endings.

"We need you to locate Opal, and possibly aid in removing her." Foaly explained.

"If you mean remove as in terminate, then that isn't possible. Younger Opal cannot die in this time frame." Artemis said, his brain churning as it contemplates various factors, forming a big picture of the situation.

Foaly immediately understood. "Of course! If Opal dies, the Opal deception would cease to exist. Time stream will not allow that, and will only allow one course of action." Foaly said.

"Erasure of Opal's memories and forcing her back through time." Artemis completed, smiling at the lost look on Holly's face.

Holly sat for a moment, fingering her Neutrino as she digested the conversation. After 30 seconds, she lifted her head. "That means we don't have to get involved?" Holly asked.

"Ideally, we don't have to, and sooner or later, someone will send her back. But..." Foaly said slowly.

"But sooner or later could mean anything from a second later or end of time" Artemis completed. "We know the past, but not the future. She could have destroyed Earth and Haven before getting sent back."

The coin dropped. "We have to send her back before something disastrous happens." Holly said.

"Warriors of time." Foaly chuckled derisively. Then, his brows furrowed. "How did you reach this conclusion before me?"

"Admit that I am more intelligent then you already." Artemis gloated, folding his arm.

Foaly immediately gave his trademark pout.

"Out of the law book... I wonder..." Artemis whispered.

"What are you thinking of, Artemis?" Holly asked accusingly.

Artemis grimaced. "Have a little faith, my fairy friend." then "Can I borrow No. 1?"

Holly opened her mouth to shoot an accusation, before realization struck her. They have to send Opal back. Only No. 1 can do that.

"No can do. No. 1 is still in bed from the fats dunking yesterday." Foaly said.

"Indeed. But what if I have him do his magic in Haven?" Artemis said, his eyes twinkling dangerously.

"Impossible. Time travel magic has to be administered close. Otherwise, No. 1 would send everything between him and Opal into limbo." Foaly said.

"Oh, he could. I heard Holly got a certain Neutrino which has a spare lithium battery." Artemis said, a grin spreading on his face.

Foaly took a double take. The gun was his personal project. Nobody other than him knows about it. Until Holly came along, of course.

Artemis watched Foaly's face. "Relax. I just found references to it while researching about krakens from the LEP server. Your private server had been a pain to crack, and had ejected me in ten minutes."

"Do we fairies have any secrets left?" Holly complained, wondering how many times she had wondered this.

"Right. Ignoring your hacking, I can see what you are getting to. Have No. 1 do his magic into the battery, then send it to you." Foaly said.

"Oh, you can forget that. We will be going back down anyway. Where would she strike first?" Artemis said.

"Of course, herself. The isolation cube." Foaly said, before tapping his keyboard furiously, to heighten the security of the prison.

At the moment, Butler, who had quietly slunk away earlier, returned with a platter of cheese.

Artemis sat for a moment, wondering why he was contemplating the cheeses in the platter. Sakura, Cheddar and Danish Blue. Then, something struck in his head.

"Opal will not try to free Opal." Artemis said absentmindedly.

"What do you mean?" Holly asked, watching as Artemis poke through the cheese platter.

"Butler, we have ten types of cheese in the house. Why only serve three?" Artemis asked.

"Too many cheeses will compete for flavor." Butler replied, remembering his cordon bleu training.

"Look at things from a criminal mastermind's point of view. Opal once told me the world is big enough for only one criminal mastermind. As demented as she is, she is still a genius. If I am Opal, I will acquire almightiness first, and then destroy Foaly and Artemis, before destroying the elder myself." Artemis said.

This time, Holly got it first.

"Too many empresses spoil the oyster." Holly said, her choice of words a spooky emulation of Opal's.

"Jayjay!" Foaly said, realization dawning upon him.

"Opal, my friends, is heading towards LEP." Artemis said, licking his lips as he relishes his genius.

* * *

_**A little footnote:** Hope you like this. It wouldn't be my magnum opus, but I enjoyed writing it. Mainly because I am unconditionally and irrevocably in love with the AF series (Now, where have we heard that before?)._

_Would appreciate reviews, as long as they are constructive and does not insults.  
_


	2. Chapter 2

_A few minutes later._

Artemis isn't feeling very genius. Nobody could, if they are strapped in a hotshot pod, knowing they are about to be dropped into a chasm of magma, straight to the center of earth.

The Drop, as recon officers called it. Apparently, one is supposed to give the word 'drop' a ghastly echo to convey the meaning. The pod is dropped into the chute, accelerating until raising heat catch the pod's fin. Then it should slow down enough to be caught by metal pincers below. Should. This was never meant to carry passengers, just a fast way to return the pod to Haven. The fastest way to Haven. And hell.

It doesn't help that Holly was seating on his lap. Fighting acrophobia would be more than enough to occupy him. Now he had to fight puberty as well.

"Give me your hand" Holly said, clearly unhappy about sharing a single pod with Artemis.

Artemis stared at the button camera Foaly was watching from, wondering for a wild moment that Holly was trying to aggravate his puberty problem.

"Falling into the lava would probably sizzle a human's lungs to crisp. Holly will have to heal you as you fall." Foaly explained, smacking the 'prt srn' button on his keyboard to capture the priceless expression on Artemis's face immediately.

Artemis felt the blood leave his face. Great, now he has to fight pyrophobia as well. Reaching out, Artemis felt Holly's fingers grab both his arms. Interesting. Smooth fingers on her left hand, rough on her right. Then, he remembered Holly holds her gun on her right hand. Of course.

Then he felt the pod beginning to move.

"All green. Drop us, Foaly." Holly said.

Artemis took a sharp gasp as G-force caught the pod, pulling it down the chute. Blood rush to Artemis's head as he watched themselves fall away from the harness. It took Artemis a second to realize the pod was tilting. By now, he was staring at what they were falling towards. A cauldron of red hot rock boiled beneath them, flares exploding upwards as thought trying to grab the falling pod. Instinctively, his arms began to grab anything it could find, in this case, Holly. The scent of Holly's hair waft into his nostrils.

"Lavender." Artemis noted aloud, before the searing heat erased his consciousness.

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Butler sighed as he watched the Fowl Bentley shake slightly. This is not a poltergeist phenomenon. A shielded fairy shuttle was trying to park, albeit badly, in the garage. Too bothered to terrorize the pixie driver, Butler squeezed his frame through the fairy sized door, which is a feat indeed.

"Big." the pixie driver spouted, obviously not expecting Butler's size. Then he hurried into the driver cabin, locking the door securely, in case the Mud Giant decides for a spot of grand theft auto.

Butler sat on the floor-sitting on the fairy sized chair would mean no head room-as he contemplated the situation. Foaly wanted Artemis down as quickly as possible, and had taken a mysterious way down, which is faster than taking a shuttle. Apparently, that mysterious way cannot handle Butler's bulk. Before Artemis left, he had pushed a cylinder of paper and two vials onto Butler's hand. Unrolling the paper, Butler began to read silently.

The moment Butler finished reading, he rolled up the piece of paper, and then held it over his lighter flame. In moments, what was left of the note was sucked by the shuttle ventilation duct.

Always two steps ahead, this is Master Fowl. Butler smiled as he awaits entry to Haven.

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Artemis felt a strange sensation across his body. A cool sensation spreading from his hand. Then, the scent of lavender reminded Artemis of the pod and the death drop. Opening his eyes, Artemis stared at the LEP insignia across the quartz windshield.

Safe. They were safe. Somehow.

"Finally, Master Fowl awakes." The familiar voice of Trouble Kelp filters through the speaker in the hot, humid pod. Artemis frowned at the coarse voice, then at the smell of a mixture of sweat, burning circuit and lavender.

"Glad to be alive, eh? I would appreciate that you release my captain from your grip though." Trouble's voice continued. Artemis glanced at the camera for a moment. Mortification suddenly dawn on him as he realized his arms are still entwined around Holly, who was beginning to show signs of asphyxiation. Artemis hurriedly withdrew his hands.

"For someone who spends his life in front of his computer, you're pretty strong." Holly said, taking a couple to deep breathes.

"Dead man's grip." Artemis said. "The last thing I thought I would ever do."

"You read 'The Supernaturalist' by Eoin Colfer? Technically, dead man's grip is a grenade built into the grip of a gun, not unlike the self destruct mechanism of our Neutrinos." Foaly suddenly said through the speaker, as various technicians swarmed the pod.

"It's pronounced as Owen. By the way, get us out. It's getting a little uncomfortable in here." Artemis complained.

Promptly, the door of the pod popped open, as cool, if recycled, air of Haven drifted in. Holly immediately hopped out of the pod, landing gracefully on the steel floor of the pod docking hangar. On the other hand, Artemis, without much grace, stumbled out of the pod.

Leg cramp, Artemis thought. If only he still had his magic, he could have magick the cramp away. Artemis tried to reach deep within himself, searching for magic. Nothing. If anything, the effort had managed to make him feel a little worse, as though he lost an important limb. Like depression, Artemis concluded.

"Let's go, Artemis." Holly said, touching Artemis's hand. Artemis felt a jolt of magic jump through the touch, making its way through his body, erasing the cramp. Very uncharacteristic of Holly to waste magic on something minor like this. Then Artemis remembered the situation at hand. Of course, there is no time to waste when a criminal mastermind is on her way to almightiness.

Running after Holly, Artemis wondered if he could steal anymore magic soon.

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"Right, we got the Mud boy, Foaly. Explain to me how he can help again?" Trouble asked. The elf is obviously stressed by the situation, his fuse constantly broken.

Artemis stared at the LCD screen, displaying various images of the explosion at The Nuns. One of the nuns had somehow disappeared. The kraken should be on its way to its new habitat now.

"Artemis can help by thinking like Opal. Psychotic criminal masterminds." Foaly said.

"I am not psychotic. I am just unpredictable." Artemis defended.

"If you hadn't tried to kidnap me." Holly said from the sofa. For a hundredth time, she was surprised by how well furnished the commander's office was. Wall length LCD screen on one side, faux leather sofa on the other. Definitely the most comfortable place in the entire LEP headquarters.

"Foaly, what are these?" Artemis asked, fingering green pixels among the rocks, or rather, kraken shells. There seem to be a lot of these green pixels.

"Fabric. Probably left behind when Opal crawled through the hole." Foaly said.

Artemis began to manipulate the Gnommish controls, zooming the image multiple times. For a moment, he simply stared at the screen. The green pixels were indeed cloth scraps.

"She did not crawl through the hole." Artemis concluded, folding his arms in a classical detective way.

"What do you mean?" Foaly asked, moving his modified centaur chair next to Artemis.

"Look at some of the cloth scrap. Although there are no sharp points on the rock, those cloth scrap were still left behind. Also, I doubt fairy technology can be so weak that just a slight scuffle among the rock could leave this much cloth scrapings behind." Artemis explained.

"So how do you propose she escaped?" Trouble said, folding his arms angrily.

"Teleport." Artemis said simply.

The word seems to sit in the silence of the room, waiting to be absorbed.

Finally, Foaly spoke. "What do you mean teleport?"

"Breaking down your atoms, then sending it into another place. Like time travel, albeit without sending your atoms into Limbo." Artemis explained.

"You seem very sure of something as unproven as teleport." Trouble said.

"Unproven? I have been messing around the magic I acquired in a time travel. I managed to send a pencil across the room. You want video prove? Hack into the Fowl database and you can easily find it." Artemis said.

"Someone said teleport?" A familiar, squeaky voice suddenly asked. On the large LCD screen, a small window appeared, displaying No. 1's face. He looked green, apparently still sick from yesterday's animal fat dunking.

"No. 1!" Holly said, remembering the cuddly voice anywhere.

"The Mud boy thinks Opal teleported." Trouble said, kneading his forehead.

"Possible. It is something of a prerequisite to time travel, since it involves breaking down atoms and sending it somewhere." No. 1 said.

"A professional's support." Artemis grinned triumphantly. "Teleport however, is not a perfect magic without enough magic. Even I left behind some wood shavings when I transported the pencil. After expanding that much magic in lightning bolts, Opal probably only had about enough magic to transport her body and clothes out. And even so, she left behind bits of her clothes in the form of those scrapings."

"Doesn't that mean she could have teleported to Jayjay yesterday?" Holly asked.

"If she had enough magic. Teleport consumes magic exponentially as the distance increase. She probably had enough to teleport out of the rock burial, before running the rest of the distance to a safe haven." Artemis said. Then he realized he made a joke. Twitching his lips into a silent smile, Artemis opened a city map on the LCD screen.

"That means she could be plotting now." Trouble said softly.

"She could also be sleeping. She needs to recover her magic." Artemis said.

"Then we could launch a search now." Trouble said.

"Bad idea. If there is a safe haven in Haven for Opal, it would be those troll infested labyrinth of abandoned tunnels at the edge of the city. Weakening our forces around Jayjay now would be the last thing we want to do." Foaly said, staring at the gray tunnels around city limits on the map.

"So we are cornered in our own city." Holly sighed.

"A cornered animal is more dangerous than in any other state. We are cornered, so is she." Artemis said, knowing he made no sense. For a moment, he stared at the screen.

"If I am her, I will take a direct route to LEP, bulldozing over anyone in the path. Then I will begin a stealth operation on LEP. Once she gets Jayjay, she can move through time as she wished anyway, so there isn't a need to care about an escape plan." Artemis said.

"So what do we do?" Trouble asked.

"We wait." Artemis and Foaly said in unrehearsed unison.

* * *

_Chapter 2~_

_Would appreciate a review!  
_


	3. Chapter 3

Butler moved silently along the LEP hallways. Earlier on, Butler had managed to shake the guard outside his waiting room off with a demand for lunch. In a bid to be a warm host of the fairy kind, the guard had run off to get food. After all, Butler is a friend of the fairies now.

Butler knew his way around. The LEP headquarters blueprint had been so easy to acquire that even without Artemis's help, Butler had managed to get one. Of course, one has to have a fairy technology enhanced computer that can connect to LEP computers first. Something only Fowl Manor has.

Stopping before the door that says 'Laboratory Storage', Butler pushed a modified Omnitool Artemis had somehow acquired. In five seconds, the door popped open.

"This thing needs a new battery." Butler grunted. Moving with silence and grace seemingly impossible for someone of his bulk, Butler slinked into the large storage warehouse. With skill that would have shamed a master burglar, Butler began moving through the hall.

For some reason, Mulch popped into his mind.

Or specifically, that dwarf's posterior.

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Trouble was seated on the desk, various transparent LCD display raised in front of him. His fingers moved at surprising speed over the touch screens, sending multiple commands to the LEP. In the past, Root had relied on the old school, going to the scene directly, or giving orders by phone. Trouble is more of a city elf, and had Foaly modify the Commander's desk into a command center of sorts.

In moments, the city had entered what Foaly calls the 'silent battle mode'. All defense mechanism such as the DNA cannons were now heated up and poised, yet civilians will continue their daily lives, blissfully ignorant.

"Concentrate manpower on LEP headquarters. Opal can come from any direction." Artemis had said.

The fact that Opal can come from any direction is worrying. On one hand, Opal's coming from any direction means civilians in the line of assault would end up as casualty. On the other hand, information of Opal time-traveling from the past has to be hidden. In fact, time-traveling itself has to be hidden. Nobody wants any smart aleck in the population to try hacking LEP database and learn to travel to the past, messing with history. Especially not when Foaly has yet to unravel the mechanics of time-travel.

"Artemis, you are considered civilian at the moment, so I would recommend you to find somewhere safe." Trouble commanded.

"You could join me in my reinforced security booth." Foaly offered.

"And risk sharing a grave with a centaur?" Artemis said. Foaly shrugged. Artemis is right, after all. If LEP somehow gets leveled, his security booth will keep him alive. Alive, yet trapped, that is. It relies on the possibility that someone may save him. If LEP is gone, he doubts anyone would, though. Unless a homicidal pixie counts, that is.

"I would appreciate having Holly with me though..." Artemis began, ignoring Holly's angry stare.

Trouble looked up from his screen for a moment, considering this option.

"Very well. Captain Short will follow Artemis. I don't have any commands for Recon at the moment anyway." Trouble said.

Holly opened her mouth, preparing to argue her importance. Then, catching Trouble's steely gaze, Holly realized Artemis's importance. Closing her mouth, Holly turned around grumpily.

"Take this then. At least I can communicate directly with you." Foaly said, dropping a handheld computer and a lithium battery on Artemis's hands. "And your order. Apparently, the magic isn't complete, but No. 1 said it should work."

As Artemis and Holly walked out of the commander's room, down the corridors, Holly folded her arms.

"So, Master Fowl. Where do you reckon would be the safest in LEP?" Holly said, her tone unfriendly.

A grin began to spread on Artemis's face.

"How long have you known me, Captain? Is there once when I could be exempted from the actions in my plans?"

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Opal sat on one of the chairs in the disused chutes. With a sudden burst of fury, she lashed out on a nearby trash can, sending it tumbling across the waiting room. Flames of revenge burn within her, stronger than ever before. That Fowl Mud Boy had managed to trump her. Trumped by a mere human. Opal hissed angrily.

Hovering up slowly, Opal sent a force wave, pushing a dead troll out of the way. That troll had made a fatal mistake of attacking Opal earlier. It now serves as a warning to other trolls.

Catching sight of what she wanted, Opal hovered to the counters that had served as departure checkpoints when the chute was still in use. Picking up an old wireless communicator, Opal sent her own electricity into the circuitry. In moments, the communicator was modified to listen for secure channels the LEP uses.

"Concentrate manpower on LEP headquarters. Opal can come from any direction." the familiar and repulsive voice of that Fowl had said.

A plan. Opal knew she need a plan. A way to penetrate LEP's defense at its weakest point, get to the lemur, and acquire almightiness. Then it is an easy matter for her to blast her way out.

Opal hovered outside the chute building, surveying the landscape. Something immediately caught her eyes. A distance from her, an old LEP chute-cleaning shuttle sat on a heightened platform, too high to be harmed by any stampeding trolls.

For a moment, Opal hovered, formulating a plan. As the plan grew, a grin spread on her lips.

Moving quickly to the LEP shuttle, Opal laid her hand on the shuttle, sending a probe into the machinery. In five seconds, the shuttle was hot-wired. Opal immediately threw herself into the shuttle. As the shuttle began to hover off ground, Opal began to laugh maniacally.

"That Fowl Mud-Boy will know what it truly meant by any direction."

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Artemis sat on the steel floor, eyes closed, knuckles on his chin. A position Holly recognized as 'thinking'. Sighing softly, Holly wondered why Artemis would decide to hole both of them up in one of Foaly's laboratory storage. Perhaps he was running from danger after all.

Still, there is no point probing Artemis about his reasons. Artemis usually doesn't share information unless the time is right. Grimacing, Holly could almost hear Butler's voice saying 'And when Artemis feels that the time is right, it usually is.'

Hugging her legs from the cold of the storage room, Holly watched as Artemis tapped rapidly on the handheld computer Foaly gave him earlier.

Five minutes passed. Then ten. Then Holly couldn't take it anymore.

"What are we doing in here?" Holly nearly screamed.

"Hold your horses, Holly." Artemis said. An image of Foaly flickered through his mind. A smile began to spread on his face, only to be smothered from Holly's exasperated face.

"We are waiting." Artemis answered cryptically.

For what, Holly wanted to retort. Taking a deep breathe, Holly sat back down.

Suddenly, Artemis and Holly's computer beeped urgently. A high urgency call. Artemis and Holly simultaneously lifted their computer.

"Artemis, Holly. Opal is coming from underground!" Foaly said, his fingers moving in the air like an orchestra conductor's. It looked like he is controlling some kind of three dimensional virtual-board.

"Ah, she came." Artemis made a knowing smile.

"Obsolete seismological sensors detected a quake that our tectonic limiter is unable to stop. The quake seemed to move across Haven in a straight line, as though a school of dwarfs is digging towards us. It took me a while to realize it could be a chute cleaner." Foaly said.

"She is coming for the synthesized lemur brain fluid." Artemis realized loudly.

"Of course!" Foaly slapped his forehead. He had clean forgotten about Jayjay's brain fluid copies No 1 had synthesized just yesterday. Opal knew they would not be as well guarded as Jayjay himself.

"She will come this way. The storage Holly and I are in, Warehouse 5, has the fluid." Artemis said, suddenly catching sight of two vials in a cold storage safe box on one of the shelves. The safe box was clearly labeled "Silky Sifaka Lemur - Synthesized Brain Fluid"

Suddenly, the connection to Foaly fizzled, only to be replaced by the feed of Opal's face.

"Foolish Mud Boy. When I get that lemur brain fluid, I will kill you first. Then that elf." Opal said, before the feed was replaced with a repeating video of Opal laughing.

At the very moment, a loud sound of something metal drilling through metal resonated throughout LEP, sending shock waves throughout. On their screen, Foaly's face was pale as warning messages popped up.

"We have a foundation shielding breach. Opal is here." Foaly whispered, his voice quivering as he watched the old LEP chute cleaner make its way into the basement laboratory storage corridor through the security cameras.

Artemis stared at Opal's laughing face on the screen for a moment. "Megalomaniac." he sighed. Then, as though remembering to be surprised, Artemis gave a gasp.

LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

Opal navigated the chute cleaner through the undergrounds of Haven, avoiding various titanium pilings. The interface of the shuttle was easy to control, almost intuitive for her. In fact, Opal suspected she had a hand in the schematics of this shuttle. The older, imprisoned she, that is.

Assuming that her nemesis, Foaly, was as sharp as he was in the past, LEP should have detected her by now. Those old Koboi seismological sensors should be beeping like crazy. How ironic for her to be discovered by her own invention.

"Mental note: Put remote charges in new Koboi gears, so I can destroy them as and when I like." Koboi said to herself.

Suddenly, the modified radio on the dashboard crackled to life.

"Artemis, Holly. Opal is coming from underground!" The annoying whinny of her centaur enemy filtered through the crackly speakers. Finally, LEP notices. Foaly's voice began to explain the situation.

Opal pushed the voice out of her mind as she began to plot the next step of her plan in earnest. The situation is going well. LEP is cornered by her approach, unable to respond effectively. Their next best and most likely move would simply be diverting their forces to guard Jayjay. This means her best choice of action would be blasting her way in. At half a tank of magic, it isn't the best idea, but it will do.

Suddenly, Artemis's voice, or rather, what that voice was saying caught her attention.

"She is coming for the synthesized lemur brain fluid." Artemis's voice blurted.

Opal widened her eyes. LEP had managed to synthesize the brain fluid already? Then again, she was quite a few years into the future. With Foaly on LEP, it shouldn't be too much of a surprise that LEP could finally do what she had been trying to do. All the better though. From Artemis's tone, the synthesized brain fluid is most probably less guarded.

"She will come this way. The storage Holly and I are in, Warehouse 5, has the fluid." Artemis voice continued. Opal's eyes widen even further. It was as though San D'Klass had once again foolishly given out presents. A smile began to spread on her face. Part two of her plan is perfect now.

Hacking the LEP server with a few commands, Opal grabbed the blueprint of the headquarters, locating Warehouse 5 immediately. A mere three hundred meters away.

Opal almost laughed. For someone who managed to trump her with a monkey soft toy yesterday, this Mud Boy is pretty thick in the skull to give information like this. No matter, she will be drilling through that skull soon, anyway.

Multi-tasking between navigating the chute cleaner and the computer, Opal hacked the LEP connections, sending her feed instead.

"Foolish Mud Boy. When I get that lemur brain fluid, I will kill you first. Then that elf." Opal said, before she broke out into a triumphant laughter.

Setting the connection to replay this laughter, Opal turned back to the chute cleaner controls. With a swift command, Opal drove the machine through the titanium foundations, right into LEP headquarters.

"Checkmate." Opal smiled.

* * *

_Yes, yes, yes. The climax! My favourite part of any story._

_Hope you like it so far~_

_Leave a review~_


	4. Chapter 4

"I will guard the brain fluid." Holly said, pulling out her Neutrino. With a swift movement, she slid behind a shelf of reagents. The sound of the chute cleaner munching its way through the corridor approached them. Foaly's anxiousness seem to drop a notch as he finally stop panicking, resuming his control on the computer.

"Various security measures are up. The DNA cannons in the storage are set to Opal's DNA, so stay clear from their shots." Foaly warned, his fingers a blur as they danced in the air. Behind them, two DNA cannon began to hiss with energy. Metal shutters began to slide down around the room, closing off all doorways. Not that it will be much of a help, with a chute cleaner bashing its way here.

Artemis took a side step behind a shelf, away from the DNA cannon. He was almost smiling. Opal's idea of his genius isn't complete yet. Coupled with her stereotype that all humans are idiots, the bait worked perfectly. After all, which genius would go to where the other genius is, after hearing his location so explicitly? Still, it's a perfect trap for a half-crazed megalomaniac. The plan is going perfectly. Opal comes in, Holly stuns her, the battery changes, Opal gets sent back, her memories wiped.

Artemis could feel the amount of magic in the tiny lithium ion battery in his pocket. Even without his magic, he could still feel an affinity to it. Maybe he can find a way to recover it. A No. 1 magic cocktail, even.

The sound of metal eating through metal reverberated through the hard walls in the storage, grating into their ears. The deafening sound continued for a second, maybe two, before something gigantic punched its way through the undersized door, lunging into the storage like a whale attempting a dive.

Artemis watched as Holly peeked around the corner of her shelves. She hurriedly moved back, as a flash of lightning blasted through the air between them.

"Is hiding all you can do now, elfling?" Opal hissed. Artemis could actually feel the levitation magic as Opal moved towards them.

Something beeped. Artemis looked down, surprised to see a mail on his handheld computer. He didn't have time to check it. A force wave blasted against the shelves they were hiding against, which began to collide on them.

"D'arvit" Artemis cursed, turning to see Holly move lithely away from the falling shelf. Not for him. Artemis's lack of training is haunting him again. If only Butler was here.

As though on cue, a huge human suddenly fall out of one of the freezers next to Artemis. His right hand went up, holding the falling shelf, as his left grabbed Artemis, pushing him from danger.

"Butler!" Artemis gasped. Butler gave a grin as the shelf, too heavy even for the Eurasian bodyguard, toppled upon him. At the very least, there would be concussion. His magically healed bones would probably hold, though. A comforting thought, despite Opal smiling menacingly a distance from them.

Holly had recovered from what happened, strafing towards Artemis as she fired multiple shots from thin air. The Neutrino's camouflage is working better than Artemis had thought. Holly looked like a warlock with Neutrino blasting ability.

"Artemis, hide." Holly said, firing shots after shots at Opal. Opal merely waved her hand, creating shields from the Neutrino shots. Artemis obeyed, knowing there wouldn't be too many deus ex machina styled Butlers popping from freezers to save him. Moving backwards quickly, Artemis moved behind a freezer. His plan was careening out of its course. At least this will serve as a reprieve for some planning.

Butler is down. Holly is cornered, Opal is not stunned. Not a single winning condition fulfilled. Still, the winning card should be on his hand. He has the lithium ion battery. All he has to do is to find a way to get Opal stay still and not use her shield. Lowering his head in frustration, Artemis tried to push out the sound of lightning and Neutrino fires.

Suddenly, something caught his eyes. The hand held computer was on his lap, its screen pulsing from the new mail earlier. Curious, Artemis tapped the keyboard, opening the mail.

"The shelves you are against have those shield creating watches we gave Butler during the Bwa Kell uprising. Use them as you deem fit. Love, Foaly."

Like a jolt of lightning, the skeleton of a plan began to form. Peeking over the two corners of his freezer, Artemis noted Holly being pushed backwards by Opal and Butler, miraculously conscious and trying to get out of the shelf without Opal noticing. He needed a diversion. Diversions are usually carried out by soldiers like Butler and Holly, but he doubt they would, or could help now. Very well, then. He is on his own.

After tapping a short sentence on his handheld computer, Artemis flung it backwards, towards Butler. A moment before the computer hit the ground, Artemis opened his mouth.

"Oh God!" Artemis shrilled, like a soprano on steroids. The computer landed, its thud hidden by Artemis's panicked scream. Butler immediately pulled the computer in, reading the content.

"Shield creating watch from Bwa Kell rebellion on shelf. Throw to me. Then get out quietly." The message read simply. Butler turned up to look at Artemis for a moment. Then, catching the message, Butler turned back to the shelf, using the light from the computer screen to illuminate under the shelf. It took him a moment to find the watch in question. With a swift throw, Butler sent the watch flying through the air, right into Artemis's outstretched arm.

"Perfect throwing as always." Artemis whispered, and then turned to the retreating Holly. Holly was now standing next to him, trying to keep Opal away from the freezer he was behind.

"Holly!" Artemis hissed. Holly turned quickly, staring at Artemis as she loosed Neutrino blasts at Opal. The moment Artemis caught her attention, he rolled his eyeballs up, stuck out his tongue to one side, and then twisted his head to another. Without doubt, he will regret this pathetic sign language to 'act death'.

Holly nearly choked on laughter at Artemis's comical expression. But the point got through. Even the fairy kind knows what this expression means. Despite doubting Artemis, Holly would follow his order. For Artemis to give up his decorum and make such a hilarious facial expression, there has got to be a plan somewhere.

With a bit of dramatics, Holly dodged an approaching lightning only to get a glancing blow from another. While it was barely a glancing blow, and didn't hurt as much as a short-circuiting Omnitool, Holly began a twirling motion, before collapsing on the ground, playing possum.

"Holly!" Artemis yelled, his voice of blood-curdling terror, running out of his hiding place. Artemis proceeds to place his arms around Holly, careful to ensure he was facing Opal.

"No, don't die!" Artemis said, just loud enough for Opal to hear. Rummaging his memories to back when Leon Abbot had managed to kill Holly, Artemis re-enacted the scene in his mind, inducing tears through his eyes.

Opal hovered a distance from them, surprised that her lightning bolt actually hit the elf. Then she began to laugh.

"Sentimental humans. Broken just because your friend died." Opal hissed.

Outside, the sound of approaching soldiers made Opal panic; if she is caught without her almightiness, she could be jailed once more. Thankfully, almightiness is just meters ahead, in the cold storage safe box.

The moment Opal's back was at them, Artemis pried the Neutrino from Holly's hand and discreetly changed the battery to the one containing No. 1's magic.

"What are you doing?" Holly whispered.

"Grab Opal." Artemis said.

Turning to Butler, who had managed to get out of the fallen shelf quietly, Artemis threw the Neutrino at him. Despite the color changing surface of the gun, Butler caught it, moving quietly behind another shelf.

"Victory conditions fulfilled." Artemis whispered.

LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

Opal sent her magic into the safe, popping the lock. Curling her fingers around one of the vials of clear liquid, Opal felt an urge to laugh triumphantly. Almightiness in her hands. The moment she down this fluid, she would be able to move through time as she wish. She will be able to kill whoever she wants a few million times is necessary.

With a child like glee, Opal popped open the vial and downed the liquid. A few seconds passed as Opal waited for the sensation of magic running through her body. Nothing happened. Then her stomach began to gurgle. Pain began to curl within. Her magic began its automatic function to heal her body and expel toxins.

"What... What's happening?" Opal screamed, turning wildly as pain clawed her stomach. To her surprise, Artemis and Holly had disappeared. A big Mud Gorilla stood a distance from her, his hand holding an invisible something that the elf was also holding earlier. Opal tried to raise her hand to cast a shield, only to find that a set of four hands gripping her limbs. Turning her head, Opal came face to face with Artemis and Holly.

"Surprise. How do you like your shot of holy water?" Artemis said, grinning at Opal. Opal's expression twisted painfully as her magic tried to push the holy water, toxic to fairy system, out of her.

Holly widened her eyes, suddenly realizing the whole plan. Artemis had already planned this battle back at Fowl Manor. He had sent Butler down with the vials of holy water and to execute a god in machine styled rescue if required.

"Foolish human. Do you think you can hold me down?" Opal hissed. Her body began to glow as she channeled magic for a force blast.

"I do not." Artemis admitted, and then relinquishes his grip on Opal. With a swift movement, Artemis smacked his wrist on Opal's nose, so that it presses the display of the watch. A yellow force shield bubble explodes outwards, encasing the three of them inside.

Before the bubble fully encases, Artemis turned to Butler.

"Fire." Artemis commanded, his tone, cold. A trained soldier, Butler's finger twitched at the word, even if he did not want to do so. White energy flashed from the muzzle of the Neutrino, the heat melting the barrel of the gun. The energy blasted across the storage, into the closing bubble. It began to bounce within the bubble, slicing through Holly, Artemis and Opal.

"Time magic?" Opal realized, her eyes widening in pure anger.

"Checkmate." Artemis concluded, a smile on his face. The smile soon faded as he realized they aren't going into the past. Then he remembered what Foaly said. The capacity of the lithium ion battery isn't enough for a whole time magic. Then this must be just the formula of the magic.

"In your dreams!" Opal hissed. "Go to Limbo, the two of you."

The magic around Opal suddenly concentrate at Holly. Artemis watched as the magic lengthened like a spear.

"No!" Artemis howled hoarsely. The spear flashed forward, impaling through Holly. The magic continued pass Holly, shattering the force shield bubble.

Artemis fall forward, holding Holly before she fell to the ground. Blood were spilling out of her too quickly. There was no magic left in Holly for any healing; the wound was too big and Holly isn't running hot.

"Die!" Opal shouted, lifting her hand to throw another magic spear at Artemis

"You die!" Butler growled, dumping the Neutrino for his trusty Sig Sauer. His finger pumped the trigger thrice, sending three Teflon coated slugs at Opal. Opal hurriedly let go of her magic spear, throwing up a shield. Three bullets smashed against the shield, their momentum transferred to Opal, sending her tumbling backwards.

"Irritating Mud Elephant!" Opal squealed, sending a bolt of lightning to paralyze Butler. Butler spasm on the spot, as his muscles contract painfully. Then he collapsed to a kneeling position.

"Stay there and watch." Opal laughed, and then prepared yet another magic lance. This time, the lance flashed forward. Artemis didn't have a chance. It was point blank range, not even one meter.

As the lance flashed towards his forehead, Artemis closed his eyes. As a scientist, he was an atheist, but Artemis began to pray. Then Artemis mused. Even a genius like him would try to believe in god at the face of death. Maybe that's why god was created. So that everyone had something to rely on. What weak beings humans are.

Then Artemis stopped. There shouldn't be this much time for his train of thought to continue for this long.

Opening his eyes, Artemis was surprised to see the lance floating in midair. Then he realized everything else seem to be frozen. Falling objects in the room hung on mid air. Opal stood frozen in front of them. Then he realized he could not move either. A time freeze. That means...

"Deus Ex Machina" A familiar voice, squeaky as it was, boomed around the room. To Artemis's surprise, No. 1 materialized next to them.

"This is bad. Why do all of you have to get hit by the marker magic? Now all of you go back." No. 1 said. The symbols on his body begin to swirl in a hypnotic pattern. Three symbols left the pattern, entering Artemis, Holly and Opal's body. The time magic was complete. The formula and the energy.

The three of them watched each other, unable to move, as their body began to break into its atoms. Then, the surrounding melt away like paint on canvas. In a lurching motion, the trio entered the time stream.

* * *

_Surprising twist isn't it? Everyone got send back~_

_'Deus ex Machina' means God in machine. It's a amateurish plot device where a 'God' appears, and save everyone, for example. _

_I wanted to try to use it without it being amateurish, though in this case, it isn't very god in machine anymore. It also got a little literal (Domovoi being a god and a fridge being a machine). _

_And yes, I know holy water is a failed plot object of the first AF book. Just thought it would be interesting to 'unfail' it. _

_Hope you are still enjoying this. Leave a comment or review if you can. _


	5. Chapter 5

Artemis moved through the time stream, already accustomed to it, from his past experiences. Moving into Holly's conscious, Artemis sensed pain and regret. Images of a willowy, beautiful elf floated about, fizzling like a bad video feed. The only thing preventing Holly from breaking into bits are strands of magic left in her body, desperately holding her atoms together. Magic. Holly needed magic, or she would not be able to make it through this time stream.

Then Artemis remembered Opal. He could steal magic again. Moving quickly through the time stream, Artemis probed into Opal's conscious. Howls of anger and resentment. The images of a burly pixie collapsing from heart attack. Then, the images of Artemis's own face, giving a devilish grin. Then he caught sight of what he was looking for. A roiling ball of red magic. The heat from this magic alone was pushing Artemis back. It was different from the cool, gentle magic No.1 had.

Reaching out, Artemis touched the magic, only to burn himself. Apparently, this magic can't be stolen unless he had fire proof gloves. Interestingly, magic seem to have different properties depending on state of mind.

Suddenly, the howling of anger in Opal's mind disappeared. Images of Artemis's grin fizzled out. Blue strands of magic curled from nowhere, strangling the red ball of magic. Artemis reached out, immediately recognizing No. 1's magic. It was wiping Opal's memories and magic.

Smiling, Artemis grabbed a strand, and then hurried it into Holly's mind. This should be enough to hold her together.

Suddenly, the time stream froze around Artemis and Holly. Or rather, Artemis and Holly stopped. Artemis could sense Opal leaving them, as she continued down the time stream into the past. With yet another lurching sensation, Artemis felt him being pulled from the time stream, onto a piece of land.

LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

"Opal was sent back safely." No. 1 said into his communicator.

"What about Holly and Artemis?" Foaly asked tentatively.

"They were sent back too." No. 1 replied.

"What?" Foaly exclaimed.

"Can't be help. My formula work by automatically taking my magic the moment I am nearby." No. 1 explained.

"Then what do we do now?" Foaly asked, anger and anguish in his tone.

"Don't worry. I had markers on them before they entered the time stream. They are in Limbo, on a piece of land that was send with Hybra. I should be able to pull them back." No. 1 said.

"You should? What do you mean you should?" Trouble hollered.

"I am still training, am I not? Give me a little time to figure out the equations." No. 1 said. Two of his symbols are still glowing, linking between him and his two friends.

"Can I at least talk to them?" Foaly said. He had been watching the camera, and the last scene was mortifying. Holly was bleeding.

"Yes, yes. You should still be able to connect to Holly's computer." No. 1 said, as his fingers began to write equations in the air.

Foaly immediately began tapping on his computer.

LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

Artemis stood up, staring at the blood pooling around Holly. She was beyond science now. Any more bleeding and she would be beyond hope. By then, even 10 No. 1s would not be enough to heal her.

Looking around, Artemis was surprised to find that they were literally on a piece of land. The chunk of red soil seemed to float in the middle of nowhere, and time seemed to be stuck at dawn. This piece of land probably belonged to Hybra. Even so, the land was empty. There was nothing he could use. Not that it could be of any use. Unless it is magic, like the lithium ion battery in his pocket earlier.

The wrist computer on Holly suddenly beeped. A connection. Artemis immediately ripped the computer out.

"Artemis!" Foaly's voice emanated through the computer speaker.

"Holly was hit. I need healing, immediately." Artemis said quickly.

A feed from Foaly appeared on screen. "How bad?" Foaly whispered tentatively.

"Very. A hole through stomach, too much blood lost." Artemis said. "Can't No. 1 send healing over or something?"

"No, he doesn't know where exactly you are in the time stream, even though he had one of those retractable magic leashes on you two. We should be able to pull you two back in an hour's time." Foaly said.

"An hour? She will be dead by then!" Artemis despaired, sinking to the ground as his legs turned to jelly.

Magic, he needed magic. Artemis wished he had grabbed more strands of No. 1's magic from earlier. Then, something jolted in his mind.

Acorn. He needed an acorn. Then he glanced at Holly's chest. Holly always carries two things around her neck. Her Book, or the fairy bible, and an acorn. Artemis remembered how he had helped Holly bury the acorn, so that the magic would heal her.

"Holly stills carry an acorn with her, does she not?" Artemis asked, fiddling with Holly's LEP suit. It took him a moment and a lot of frustration to figure out the catch.

"Yes, she still does." Foaly said, suddenly looking up.

Artemis tore Holly's suit apart, immediately catching sight of a brown sphere next to a small golden tome. Careful not to touch the golden Book, Artemis broke the sphere. Soil spill out, along with a light brown, hard object. Artemis immediately picked up the acorn.

"Help her bury it." Foaly said. Artemis nodded, and then pulled Holly's cold fingers around the acorn. Digging a hole in the red soil, Artemis plunged Holly's hand into it. For a moment, he waited with bated breath for magic to return to Holly. As seconds past, Artemis turned to the computer.

"She was too far from being alive to complete the Ritual." Foaly concluded, looking down again.

"What do you mean?" Artemis asked, though he knew what Foaly meant. Foaly didn't answer.

Artemis collapse backwards again. He stared at the cold, lifeless Holly, feeling blood pump in his ears. Hot tears stung his eyes. He needed magic. If he had magic he could save Holly. If only there is a seafood fridge around here. Then he can freeze her and wait for his magic to replenish. Suddenly, Artemis sat up.

"Warlocks. Do warlocks complete Rituals?" Artemis asked carefully.

"They don't. Their magic replenishes automatically. But they could, if they wanted magic quickly." Foaly said.

Artemis immediately retrieved the acorn. He had stolen power from a demon warlock. That makes him a warlock, or at least, a partial one, doesn't it? Then it makes sense to...

Artemis plunged the acorn in him hand into the soil. "I return you to the earth, and claim the gift that is my right."

A second passed. Then two. Then three. Artemis was going to give up when suddenly, green energy explode from the ground, curling around him. The energy thrust into him, filling his entirety. Artemis felt various scratches healing on his body and his hazel eye began to hurt terribly. It took his magic a moment to realize that the eye belongs to Artemis, even if it is of different color.

Artemis jumped up, literally. It was as though he was lighter by a few kilograms. Magic vibrated under every inch of his skin, hissing through his every pore.

"Gods..." Trouble, who had suddenly appeared on the screen, whispered.

"I will heal her now. Give me the directions." Artemis said, as he made his way to Holly. It was as though magic itself was hope, filling him once more.

The bleeding had ceased. There was no heart beat to pump the blood anymore.

"There isn't much brain damage yet, and the wound should be clean, since my suit would not leave behind fibers. Tear off her clothes just in case. I don't want a newbie magician healing my Holly to her suit." Foaly said.

"I see your sarcasm is back." Artemis said, tearing off Holly's tight fitting suit and helmet.

"Put your hand on her, and then push out as much magic as you could." Foaly said.

Artemis placed his hand on Holly. Heal, he whispered, pushing all the magic out through her hand. The blue sparks flooded outwards, at first, repelling from Holly's unmoving body. Then, as though finally finding a spark of life, the sparks began to sink in from that point.

Artemis watched as the magic began pulling blood back into the wound, making more for what was lost. The flesh on Holly's stomach began to knit back, healing with unnatural speed.

As the lasts of the bloody hole on her stomach was sealed, Holly's body started shuddering.

"Her spine was being rebuilt. Push out more magic. Make sure there is enough for the nerves to connect." Foaly squealed.

Artemis closed his eyes to concentrate, pushing harder. Still, there is a limit to his magic. The masses of sparks became thinner as the lasts of his magic was pushed out. As the final sparks ebbed out, Artemis fell backwards.

Steam vented from Holly's pores creating a haze over them. For a moment, Artemis felt fear. The memories of his magic failing just yesterday, when he used it on his mother, filtered through his mind. What if Holly did not move even after this healing? What if, like mother, she got worse?

"Move in Artemis! Hold her neck in place!" Foaly shrilled, his voice yet another octave higher. Remembering all the mayhem from his experience with two major healing, Artemis stumbled forward, clamping his hands on Holly's head and his legs around Holly's body. He felt like a wrestler carrying out a submission move on his enemy.

"Here it comes." Foaly continued. Holly began thrust wildly as her brain ran checks. Every joint on her body were tested to its limits. Surprised by Holly's strength, Artemis held tighter. By now, Artemis felt like an unfit boy trying to ride an angry bull upside down.

Gradually, the trashing stopped. Artemis let go of Holly, too tired to even move from under her.

"Is she alright?" Foaly asked tentatively. Artemis did breathing exercises for a moment, before sliding out. Placing his fingers on Holly's wrist, Artemis released a breath in relief. There is a strong heart beat. As the steam cleared, Artemis checked her face. She looked hale and hearty, peacefully asleep. Her hair had grown quite a bit, but at least it isn't white. In fact, Holly looked beautiful with long hair. Artemis wondered how he should comment on that to get her to keep the hair.

"Yes, she is alright, though her hair is a little to the long side." Artemis said.

In response to this, wild cheering could be heard from the computer. Apparently, many fairies have been waiting for the outcome.

"Now we just have to wait for her to wake up, and make sure mentally, Holly is still Holly. Technically, there shouldn't be any brain damage." Foaly said from among the cheering.

"You can ask her now." Artemis said. Holly's eyelids had fluttered open as she tried to get a bearing of where she is.

"What happened?" Holly asked, sitting up suddenly.

"We are in Limbo. No. 1 held onto us, so we weren't sent back with Opal." Artemis replied.

"I'm alive?" Holly whispered, looking down at her stomach. Only bits of dried blood on her smooth, unblemished chestnut skin indicated any injury.

"Healing. I used your acorn." Artemis said.

Holly sat for a moment, making sense of Artemis words. Shivering suddenly from the cold, Holly looked down on her bare body.

"I am not wearing anything!" Holly suddenly exclaimed. Artemis immediately tossed Holly's clothes at her.

"You healed me?" Holly asked as she pulled her clothes on.

"Yes. You couldn't complete the Ritual." Artemis explained, closing his eyes.

Holly sat for a moment, digesting the facts. Then she turned to Artemis. Marks of tears streak Artemis's face. Holly smiled. Artemis cried for her again. Moving forward suddenly, Holly gave Artemis a kiss on his lips.

"Thank you." Holly whispered. Artemis sat for a moment, stunned. Opening his eyes, Artemis stared into Holly's mismatched ones.

Shattering the atmosphere suddenly, Foaly's voice danced from the computer speaker. "Ah, spring. When a young elf's fancy turns to love."

"Kissing between species is disgusting." Mulch's voice stated derisively.

Holly turned, surprised to see Foaly's face grinning on the screen.

"You saw that?" Holly demanded.

"I saw it, saved it and am going to post it on net." Foaly said, his voice dancing.

"Get No. 1 to pull me back. I am going over to smash a few computers." Holly growled, grabbing the computer.

"Maybe it can join the league of Holly-starred 'What NOT to do' LEP instructional videos." Mulch guffawed.

Artemis smiled, touching his lips gently. Maybe he can start a hobby collecting Holly's kisses. Holly would probably kill him if she knows this though.

Then he remembered how Holly's age is more than four times his.

Maybe not.

* * *

_There you have it. The romance part. People who read my other stories would be surprised that I did not tread into lemon. I'm surprised myself. Maybe I will make a seperate lemon side story again. _

_In any cases, if you are not a fan of pointless epilogues, and wouldn't mind this story hanging here, the next chapter is rather redundant. _

_I would try to tie up a few loose ends in the next chapter, but, embarressingly, I lost count of the plot holes I have not filled. _

_Would appreciate if you guys can help leave a review or pm, telling me the loose ends. _

_Or you could just leave a comment~_


	6. Chapter 6

Artemis fell to the ground, grateful for its solidity. Their ride back through the time stream were a little to the rocky side and Artemis swore he saw battleships.

"Welcome back." No. 1 smiled. Holly hopped up to hug the cuddly imp demon.

"Do I get a kiss?" Foaly asked. Trouble was a distance away, giving various commands to his personal LEP Retrieval squads.

"No, you do not." Holly said.

"My new Neutrino was broken too." Foaly pouted.

"Delete that video, or I'll complain to Caballine this weekend." Holly threatened.

"You hear that, Trubs. Captain is threatening his superior." Foaly said.

"Now you are my superior." Holly said, folding her arms.

Trouble sighed as he made his way to Artemis.

"That's quite a bit of double bluffing you did there." Trouble said.

"I guess so. Some of the best plans involve double bluffing." Artemis said. Butler stood next to his principal, fully aware of the effects his presence have on the commander he had downed a few years ago.

"Best plan? Don't make me laugh. My captain almost got killed." Trouble said.

"Apparently, all my best plans involving the People will have blips somewhere." Artemis said.

"Now that we know you have magic, I am tempted to wipe you." Trouble said slowly, watching Butler.

"Now that I know you are tempted to wipe me, I am tempted to mesmer the People." Artemis shrugged.

"You're a scream. Very well. I won't do it, as long as you do not expose this magic to the world." Trouble sighed.

"Relax, Trouble. You can trust me. I have a family I do not wish to endanger." Artemis said, smiling gently.

"In any cases, everything ended nicely. Opal is back and had no idea what happened. Artemis got a kiss from Holly, I got a blackmail video in my hard drive." Foaly said, then began to guffaw in laughter as Holly chased after him.

"Well then, time for us to return." Artemis said as Butler followed him out.

"I'll follow them." Holly said.

"You go to the health center. Who knows what that human's healing did to your body." Trouble said. Artemis laughed, surprised that he did so.

"Well then, goodbye, Holly." Artemis said. Holly nodded sullenly in reply.

"By the way, I like your long hair." Artemis said, before turning to follow an elf to the shuttles bay.

"He says he like your long hair." Foaly teased.

"Shut up. I am thinking of growing it long anyway." Holly said, then walked off towards the health center. Maybe she could dye it silver, like Vinyaya. Then again, auburn is more her color.

Artemis fingered his hand phone, staring at the LCD display. On it, the long haired version of Holly's face smiled, marred only by the operator's logo on her forehead. Foaly had taken the liberty to hack his hand phone, changing its wallpaper to Holly's photo, for an idea of a joke. Resolving to hack back, Artemis wondered how he could Photoshop Caballine's photo before clogging it into Foaly's private server.

"Artemis simple-toon." Beckett stated. Artemis snapped his hand phone back, then lifted his eyes. Beckett stood a distance away, his nappy missing again. Moving his eyes lazily around Fowl Manor's garden, Artemis soon found his parents on the swing and Myles playing with his jar of mold. His mother's idea of a picnic in the manor garden. Apparently, it was life's little joys.

Not getting any response from his brother, Beckett ran off again, presumably to disturb his twin brother. Artemis sighed as he lean back on his deck chair.

"Not playing?" Butler asked.

"I am 15, or 18 as I should be." Artemis replied, chuckling softly. For a moment, they sat like this, enjoying the warmth from the sun.

"It would be fun if Holly comes along." Artemis said softly.

"Are you in love with Holly?" Butler asked jokingly.

Artemis glanced at Butler once. Then he considered his time with Holly, and how his heart rate would increase. A familiar phenomenon. Suddenly, Artemis remembered how he had described love in one of the few romance novels he had penned under a pseudonym.

'Your heart beat wildly at the thought of her. Your mind was constantly occupied with her smile. You put her photo on your phone wallpaper. You find time spent without her boring.' Artemis remembered the paragraph vividly.

"Maybe." Artemis said softly.

A strange silence ensues.

Finally, Butler broke the silence.

"Don't forget the dinner date you have with Miranda this evening." Butler said.

Artemis widened his eyes, suddenly remembering the promise he had made a week ago.

"Will you break a maiden's heart for a warrior's?" Butler sang to a song Artemis didn't know.

Maybe.

* * *

_Finally, I can leave this story behind. Took me a while to upload this._

_I wanted to keep the relationship between Artemis and Holly is still the same as Eoin Colfer left them, despite me being a A/H shipper._

_Hope all of you enjoyed this story._

_By the way, the song Butler sang to does not exist. It would be an interesting coincidence if there really is a song with those lyrics, though.  
_


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